Tim Robinson: If our students think that the discussion posting is useless and not at all entertaining. It likely means that it is useless and not at all entertaining. We know this because we often feel the same way when we have to make contrived discussions posts. It’s not that our jobs are about entertaining students, but we do need to do what we can do make it at least tolerable.

If we can expand our understanding of the tool to get beyond just ‘discussions’ but see it as a platform for other creative ways to explore a topic, we’ll find a much richer level of learning. We can, maybe, even have some fun with it.

The list is split into 4 roughly equal sections, (I) Accessibility, (II) Identity, (III) Navigation, and (IV) Content. I'll describe and rationalize all of the sections and line items below, but you can also download the checklist as a simple, 1-page PDF. I try to keep it simple with 3 basic ratings: (1) Green Check = Good/Pass, (2) Red Check = Needs work, but no disaster, (3) Red X = Bad/Fail. Not all points are necessarily applicable to all sites.

Great short list. One to use that is very useful and best known is the Nielsen's heuristics list. Of course, we're talking about the generic aspects. Heuristics can be specialized as well depending on the type of software application and its function. :)

"All of my classes, regardless of student age or demographics – elementary gifted students or graduate students, begin with ice-breakers and team-building activities. I recently developed a passion for using students’ mobile devices to do so as this devices have become natural and personalized extensions of students’ “selves.”"

This is one of the first resources to actively use digital tools to upgrade the minutes before instruction starts. In my professional experience this would be very useful. I think this is a new area that can be developed further to build in opportunities for students to use technology to deepen their learning. What do you think? Would you use this new resource?

"Creating designs with words can be a great way to reinforce spelling , learning of new words and describing a theme or topics. Students can create their own designs and use them to decorate the classroom. here are 4 great apps which allow you to design using words in different ways."

What does the future of learning hold? What will classrooms of the future be like? Emerging technologies such as cloud computing, augmented reality (AR) and 3D printing are paving the way for the future of education in ways we may have yet to see. At the very least though, we can extrapolate from what these promising technologies and predict how schools will adopt them in time to come.

"Project-based learning is a matter of identifying needs and opportunities (using an app like flipboard), gathering potential resources (using an app like pinterest), collecting notes and artifacts (with an app like Evernote), concept-mapping potential scale or angles for the project (using an app like simplemind), assigning roles (with an appp like Trello), scheduling deadlines (with apps like Google Calendar), and sharing it all (with apps like OneDrive or Google Drive).

With that in mind, below are 30 of the best apps for getting this kind of work done in the classroom, with an emphasis on group project-based learning apps for both Android and iPad (and even a few for plain old browsers)."

With that in mind, below are 30 of the best apps for getting this kind of work done in the classroom, with an emphasis on group project-based learning apps for both Android and iPad (and even a few for plain old browsers)."

"Blended Learning is not so much an innovation as it is a natural by-product of the digital domain creeping into physical boundaries. As digital and social media become more and more prevalent in the life of learners, it was only a matter of time before learning became “blended” by necessity.

That said, there’s a bit more to Blended and “Hybrid” Learning than throwing in a little digital learning." Terry Heick

Sharing your scoops to your social media accounts is a must to distribute your curated content. Not only will it drive traffic and leads through your content, but it will help show your expertise with your followers.

Integrating your curated content to your website or blog will allow you to increase your website visitors’ engagement, boost SEO and acquire new visitors. By redirecting your social media traffic to your website, Scoop.it will also help you generate more qualified traffic and leads from your curation work.

Distributing your curated content through a newsletter is a great way to nurture and engage your email subscribers will developing your traffic and visibility.
Creating engaging newsletters with your curated content is really easy.